A former top FSB officer, Alexander Litvinenko, was quoted as saying the killing must have been political.

"In today’s Russia, not one businessman under any
circumstances would raise their hand against a general of the FSB,"
said Mr Litvinenko, quoted by the Associated Press.

I’m not entirely convinced by this argument, I have to say. Trofimov didn’t retire – he was fired from his job in 1997. Although he probably still had many powerful friends within the FSB, times are changing rapidly. Today’s FSB owes little loyalty to a man fired almost a decade ago.

That isn’t to say, however, that political motivations weren’t behind the killing. (Oh, I do love to sit on the fence!) Who knows what information he picked up during his tenure in the FSB. I simply don’t think that people will be that intimidated by the prospect of killing a former FSB general if they think that the financial rewards are high enough. And, of course, if they think they can get away with it!